Socialist Zohran Mamdani, the man hated by Trump, won the mayor's office of New York / Democrats triumph in the first important elections of the second term of the Republican leader

Democrats won three major elections on Tuesday, their first since Donald Trump's return to the presidency, giving the struggling party a boost ahead of next year's midterm elections.

Zohran Mamdani, a 34-year-old Democratic socialist, won the New York City mayoral race on Tuesday despite opposition from Donald Trump and many in his own party.

In Virginia and New Jersey, Democrats Abigail Spanberger and Mikie Sherrill won the gubernatorial election by a wide margin.

Tuesday's election provided a barometer of how Americans feel after nine tumultuous months in office for Trump.

The election also served as a test of Democrats' various campaign strategies ahead of 2026, at a time when the party is trying to find direction after last year's disastrous defeat.

Democrats have reason to rejoice. However, there are important nuances. The midterm elections are a year away, an eternity in the Trump era. And Tuesday's polls were all in Democratic-leaning regions that did not support Trump in last year's presidential election.

In a social media post late Tuesday, Trump suggested Republicans lost the election because of the government gridlock and because his name was not on the ballot.

How Mamdani won the mayor's office of New York

All three Democratic candidates focused on economic issues, particularly the cost of living and access to public services.

But Spanberger and Sherrill come from the moderate wing of the party, while Mamdani has used an insurgent campaign fueled by viral social media clips to present himself as a progressive and a voice of the new generation.

Mamdani, who will become the first Muslim mayor of the largest US city, defeated former Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo, 67, who ran as an independent after losing the nomination to Mamdani earlier this year.

Cuomo, who resigned as governor four years ago after sexual harassment allegations he denied, described Mamdani as a left-wing radical whose proposals are impractical and dangerous.

In a sign of how Mamdani's campaign has energized many voters, more than 2 million votes, including early votes, were cast across the city, according to the election commission, the most in a mayoral race since 1969.

Mamdani called for taxing corporations and the wealthy to fund ambitious left-wing policies such as rent freezes, free childcare and free city buses.

Business people have expressed concern over the appointment of a socialist to lead the world's financial capital.

Republicans have already signaled that they intend to present Mamdani as the representative figure of the Democratic Party. Trump labeled Mamdani a “communist” and vowed to cut city funding in response to Mamdani's rise.

Trump was on voters' minds

Spanberger, who defeated Republican Winsome Earle-Sears, will take over as Virginia governor from another Republican.

Sherrill, of New Jersey, who defeated Republican Jack Ciattarelli, will take over from Democrat Phil Murphy.

Both Sherrill and Spanberger tried to tie their opponents to Trump in an effort to capitalize on the frustration of Democratic and independent voters with his policies.

“We sent the message to the world that in 2025, Virginia chose pragmatism over partisanship,” Spanberger said in his victory speech. “We chose our Commonwealth over chaos.”

The president appears to have offered new reasons for a vote against Republicans.

The administration threatened on the eve of the election to lay off federal employees — a move with a huge impact on Virginia, a state bordering Washington, DC, that is home to many government employees.

He also froze billions of dollars in funding for a new rail tunnel under the Hudson River, a project crucial to New Jersey's commuter population.

In interviews Tuesday at polling places in Virginia, some voters said they considered Trump's most controversial policies, including his efforts to deport immigrants who entered the U.S. illegally and to impose costly tariffs on imports of foreign goods, the legality of which is being evaluated this week by the U.S. Supreme Court.